A passageway originally illustrated the article ‘Paraza: A French Global Village – Some 19 Nations Among 565 Inhabitants,’ along with numerous photographs our magical time at an artist retreat in the village of Paraza, South of France. We discovered much later, as documented below, that the passage was really a set of stairs, which I had caught with my camera at a most photogenic moment. Then, the idea of the project germinated until it became clear in mind and concrete in action and there it was! The original invitation for a collaborative project reads as follows:

My Secret Passage Way

Memories are a peculiar thing. / They cannot be relied on to tell the truth!

Surely my Passage Way - were not stairs / Pennie pointed out otherwise. / She became the realist /In this instance.

She painted a Passage Way beautifully / As stairs that led from a nearly hidden entrance / Down to a level on a Paraza hill / Just above the Canal du Midi.

I retreat to my Secret Passage Way / In my mind, while finding moments / That I do not share with anyone. / And I mean: Anyone…

We all have our secrets.

Now, the photograph has been altered / Photo Shop is the current technology. / Leaves have been removed / Along with other minor changes / So that the ‘Secret Passage Way’ appears to be real.

Photos are only moments in time.

When I return to my original Passage Way in my mind / My memories serve me well.

During four months we called for contributions in the photo and word project ‘A Secret Passage Way’ via personal invitations, emails and on two Face Book pages. More than forty participants submitted poems, photographs, paintings, watercolors, drawings, a jacquard tapestry and a Lexan sculpture. Some 60 photographs span places around the world and many have taken the project into imaginative territories.

The Face Book-project shows mostly the string of photographs with notes as they were posted from February to May 2014. Here, we have attempted to cluster the contributions expressing similarities or opposites, the yin yang of minds and thoughts. Actually on Face Book we had to re-post several contributors, because jpgs. mysteriously vanished – whose handy-work, I wonder?

Many ‘likes’ and comments can be read on both FB-pages and we exchanged emails and conversations with participants. It has been a lively time expanding the project. Included are memorable notes with the photographs, space permitting, a haiku and a poem that was part of a well fitting project at Le C.L.A.P, Galerie d’Arts in Paraza, France.

Just an underground 'vein' / descending into the abyssfrightful flood / somber Havana / with their tight lips.

And

The Staircase, by JOMY 24/2/2014

Whether it is hidden, for emergency, or honor, Whether it is spiral, straight, or double revolution The staircase, This strange object that has always given many trouble To its builders, Forms this link That connects the Men of below to the Men of above. Whether you are big or miserable There is always a stairway to take A Stairway to understand A Stairway to find And when we get to the end of our stairway Faced with multiple galaxies We are left with no more than the simple Realization that to catch the stars It is not enough to mount The staircase.

We are thankful for a truly collaborative project that has enriched us all, participants and viewers from around the world.

Reader Comments

"What an adventure! I felt like I had embarked on an exciting, worldwide journey. The slide show of images is like a passageway itself - only no longer \'secret\' since Astrid has presented for everyone to see. Thanks - great job!"

Posted By: Robert Morgan on 06-24-2014, 05:22 pm

"Astrid, I have never seen a more exquisite collection of images. It is spiritually satisfying to journey through them. Your juxtapositions enhance each other, so that the images themselves form affinities as we do in life. Your arrangement toward the final crescendo of profound abstract statements of the human condition is breathtaking. Thank you for orchestrating so richly this sublime pursuit of the commonalities of people of all the world. Brilliant!"

Posted By: Pennie Brantley on 06-24-2014, 02:54 pm

"Its a fascinating portfolio of images about doorways as a metaphor of our lives.Walkways down halls; doors of dreams and pain; imaginative stairways."

Posted By: Michael Bedford on 06-22-2014, 10:01 am

"Thank you so much! For the opportunity to participate, but most of all, for the beauty of this powerful journey through space and time and the imagination via a stunning array of images"

Posted By: Betty Vera on 06-22-2014, 09:55 am

"It's a wonderful exhibition, poignant and ethereal. "

Posted By: Jane Hudson on 06-22-2014, 09:32 am

"Wonderful images; would be great to see them in large format as a wall exhibit. Great job Astrid."

Posted By: Zeren Earls on 06-21-2014, 10:56 pm

"Wonderful idea and beautiful images!"

Posted By: Liz Cunningham on 06-20-2014, 08:44 pm

"Besides a digital exhibit, this should be a traveling show around the world! It would be great in the form of blowup images and large printed poetry for small museums, galleries and Kunsthallers. Terrific idea and project, Astrid. Congratulations.
"

Posted By: Mark Favermann on 06-19-2014, 09:33 am

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